‘Star Wars’ Heads to Imax 70mm for First Time With ‘Starfighter’ and ‘A New Hope’ 50th Anniversary Re-Release

A galaxy far, far away has never looked this good.

The original “Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope” is getting the coveted Imax 70mm treatment when it re-releases in early 2027 for its 50th anniversary, along with next year’s Ryan Gosling-starring “Star Wars: Starfighter.”

The Feb. 19 re-release marks the first time the original 1977 “Star Wars” movie has received an Imax screening of any kind. Both “A New Hope” and “Starfighter” will also release in digital Imax screens. “Starfighter,” directed by Shawn Levy and starring Gosling as a hotshot space pilot, will hit theaters on May 28, exactly 50 years after “Star Wars” first debuted in 1977.

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Gosling plays Kade Auberon in “Starfighter”; the logline teases “When a cynical rogue is confronted by his mysterious past, he is hurled into a dangerous adventure across the galaxy that puts him on a crash course with destiny.”

The cast includes Matt Smith, Mia Goth, Aaron Pierre, Jamael Westman, Daniel Ings, Flynn Gray and Amy Adams. The film is written by Jonathan Tropper, produced by Levy and Kathleen Kennedy, with Gosling, Dan Levine, Mary McLaglen, and Josh McLaglen serving as executive producers.

Imax 70mm screenings have exploded in popularity this year, thanks mostly to Christopher Nolan’s epic summer blockbuster “The Odyssey.” Available only in handfuls of cinemas worldwide, Imax 70mm locations have delivered a record $78 million in global box office this year — a per-screen average of $1.9 million — often selling out many locations for weeks across round-the-clock showtimes. “The Odyssey” just extended its Imax 70mm screenings through September for a historic 11-week theatrical run. It’s the highest-grossing Imax release of all time with more than $450 million globally, as well as the biggest R-rated movie in history with over $1.6 billion in total sales.